Skip to content
Oak National Academy
Oak National Academy
Teachers
Pupils
icon-background-square
New
New
Year 7

Actions to tackle climate change

I can describe how we can mitigate against and adapt to climate change.

Download all resources
arrow-right
Share activities with pupils
arrow-right
icon-background-square
New
New
Year 7

Actions to tackle climate change

I can describe how we can mitigate against and adapt to climate change.

Download all resources
arrow-right
Share activities with pupils
arrow-right
warning

These resources will be removed by end of Summer Term 2025.

Switch to our new teaching resources now - designed by teachers and leading subject experts, and tested in classrooms.
View new resources
arrow-right

Lesson details

Key learning points

  1. There are a range of things we can do to measure our impact on the planet.
  2. Living more sustainably can help tackle climate change.
  3. We can mitigate against climate change by: planting trees, international agreements, and using alternative energy.
  4. We can adapt to climate change by: adapting agriculture, considering water supply, and protecting the land from erosion.

Keywords

  • Carbon footprint - A number representing the total number of carbon dioxide or other greenhouses gases that an individual, product, person, or country produces.

  • Adaptation - Making changes to suit different conditions.

  • Sustainable - If something is sustainable it is able to continue over a long time.

  • Mitigation - Actions to reduce or prevent something.

Common misconception

It's fine to adapt or mitigate, we don't need to do both.

Adaptation helps us cope with climate change, but it doesn’t stop the problem from getting worse. Mitigation helps slow down climate change. The best approach is to use both mitigation and adaptation.


To help you plan your year 7 geography lesson on: Actions to tackle climate change, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...

It's useful to use real-world examples to make the distinction between adaptation and mitigation clear. For example, show images of wind farms or electric cars to represent mitigation and flood barriers or drought-resistant crops to illustrate adaptation.
speech-bubble
Teacher tip
equipment-required

Equipment

copyright

Licence

This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2025), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0 except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).

Lesson video

Skip lesson video

Loading...

Starter quiz

Download starter quiz

6 Questions

Q1.
What is the main difference between weather and climate?
Weather is the long-term condition of the atmosphere, climate is short-term.
Correct answer: Weather is short-term, and climate is long-term.
Weather refers to the temperature, and climate refers to rainfall.
Weather affects only one region, and climate affects all regions.
Q2.
Which of the following is a factor that influences climate?
Tides
Hurricanes
Correct answer: Latitude
Earth's age
Q3.
What does the term microclimate refer to?
Correct answer: A climate in a very small area that differs from the surrounding region.
The climate in mountainous regions.
The average climate over a large area.
The weather in cities.
Q4.
Which of these is an example of a climate zone?
Forest
Lake
Mountains
Correct answer: Tundra
Q5.
How does altitude affect the climate of a region?
The higher the altitude, the warmer the climate.
Altitude has no impact on climate.
Correct answer: The higher the altitude, the cooler the climate.
The altitude changes the wind speed, affecting climate.
Q6.
What factor can cause seasonal changes in weather?
The Earth’s rotation
The Earth’s distance from the sun
The position of the moon
Correct answer: The tilt of the Earth's axis

Exit quiz

Download exit quiz

4 Questions

Q1.
What is a carbon footprint?
Correct answer: Amount of carbon dioxide emissions produced by individuals/organisations/things.
The total amount of oxygen consumed by an individual.
A type of carbon-based product.
The level of carbon in the Earth's atmosphere.
Q2.
What does sustainable mean in the context of climate change?
Correct answer: Reducing greenhouse gas emissions & supporting long-term environmental balance.
Ignoring the environmental impact and focusing only on economic growth.
Using fossil fuels for energy indefinitely.
Continuing to expand industries regardless of their environmental effects.
Q3.
How can individuals reduce their carbon footprint?
Eating more red meat
Using more fossil fuels
Correct answer: Recycling and using less plastic
Traveling more by plane
Q4.
Why is it important to both mitigate and adapt to climate change, rather than focusing on just one?
Correct answer: Mitigation reduces causes, adaptation prepares for impacts.
Mitigation alone fixes the problem, no adaptation needed.
Adaptation stops climate change completely.
Neither mitigation nor adaptation affect climate change.